Three British soldiers have been killed and several others injured after the heavily-armoured vehicle they were travelling in was hit by a large roadside bomb while they were on a routine patrol in Afghanistan.
The Afghan Ministry of Defence on Wednesday said the men had been killed on Tuesday in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province, on the border of Kandahar just north of the provincial capital Lashkar Gah.
It is understood six other Britons were injured in the explosion, which happened while the soldiers were inside a Mastiff troop carrier – a 15-tonne vehicle which is regarded as one of the safest operated by the British military. Nine Afghans also died in the attack.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain had paid a “very high price” for the work it was doing in Afghanistan as he paid tribute to the three soldiers.
The ministry said the injured men received immediate medical attention and were evacuated by air to the military hospital at CampBastion but three could not be saved. Next of kin have been informed. The other soldiers hurt are not thought to have life-threatening injures.
